Johnson finding groove, trails Henley by 1 at Northern Trust

By Associated Press

Aug 24, 2017 | 8:05 PM

WESTBURY, NY - AUGUST 24: Dustin Johnson of the United States lines up a putt on the 14th green during round one of The Northern Trust at Glen Oaks Club on August 24, 2017 in Westbury, New York. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) ** OUTS - ELSENT, FPG, CM - OUTS * NM, PH, VA if sourced by CT, LA or MoD ** (Jamie Squire / Getty Images)

OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. — Golf hasn't felt this easy to Dustin Johnson since he was making it hard for anyone to beat him.

Coming off a week in the Bahamas and switching back to his old putter to rely more on feel, Johnson ran off three birdies over his last six holes at Glen Oaks Club and finished with a 5-under 65 to trail Russell Henley by one shot after the opening round of The Northern Trust.

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Johnson missed only two fairways and two greens Thursday afternoon, and he finished with a shot up the hill to 4 feet for one last birdie that gave him his lowest round since he won at Riviera in February to rise to No. 1 in the world.

"Today was much easier than it has been in the past," Johnson said. "I've been saying it's close and I've seen signs of it. But today was the first day where I felt like all day I was really in control of the swing. Hit a lot of really good shots. Drove it well. Did everything really well. It's the first time in a long time I've done that."

He specifically used as a reference the weeks leading into the Masters, when Johnson looked nearly unstoppable by winning three straight tournaments. And then he was stopped by a staircase in his rental home at the Masters, slipping in socks and wrenching his back. He had to withdraw from Augusta National the next day, and since then he has been trying to get over the back injury and get back his game.

The first of four FedEx Cup playoff events moved this year to Glen Oaks, a course no one in the field knows particularly well. It is spacious and immaculate, with contoured greens that can be difficult to negotiate outside of close range.

Henley brought a conservative strategy of aiming for the safe part of the green, and he converted eight birdies. Seven of them were from 12 feet or closer, a testament to how well he was playing. He also chipped in from 80 feet.

"I don't know what the key is, or the secret," Henley said. "I just tried to hit the fairway, make sure I hit the green when I was in the fairway, and the greens are great and I rolled in a couple of putts."

Scott Brown, Camilo Villegas and Chris Kirk were at 66, and it was an important start for Villegas and Kirk.

The top 100 in the FedEx Cup after this week advance to the second playoff event at the TPC Boston. Kirk is at No. 97, Villegas is one spot behind. It was even better for a few players who opened with a 67, such as Bubba Watson (No. 113), Martin Flores (No. 118) and Harold Varner III (No. 123).

Flores only got into the top 125 by finishing with an ace, a par and a birdie at the Wyndham Championship.

Phil Mickelson, meanwhile, needs to see a score much better than his 72, which featured two straight birdies at the end but also a pair of double bogeys. Mickelson has played in every Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup since 1994, and he is in danger of being left out of the Presidents Cup next month at Liberty National.

U.S. captain Steve Stricker has said he needs to see signs from the five-time major champion, and Mickelson knows that.

"I would love to be on that team, but I've got to bring something to the table," Mickelson said.

Canadian Pacific Women's Open

At Ottawa, Ontario, Marina Alex shot a 5-under 66 to take the lead in the LPGA event, while Canadian star Brooke Henderson was in danger of missing the cut after a 74.

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Alex had four birdies on her opening nine — the back nine at Ottawa Hunt — and added two birdies and a bogey on her second nine. The American is winless on the PGA Tour.

Henderson, from nearby Smiths Falls, struggled on the greens. The 19-year-old Canadian has four LPGA Tour victories, winning the major KPMG Women's PGA last year and the Meijer LPGA Classic in June.

South Korea's In Gee Chun and England's Holly Clyburn were a stroke back at 67.